Newark Planes Take Off In Wrong Direction

[Two's in]

The headline was too funny to ignore, but the underlying story of friction between the FAA and controllers union over confusion concerning new departure procedures at EWR probably isn't very funny at all.

http://wcbstv.com/seenon/newark.libe....2.730774.html

Planes at Newark Liberty International Airport depart southwest have historically turned to the left on take-off, but now a new regulation that went into effect in December allows controllers to tell pilots to take a right turn...
..."We're running into confusion at the runway," said Ray Adams, vice president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association. "The pilots are being told one thing 30 minutes before departure and then they get on the runway and we're required to tell them another thing."

Said one passenger: "That is very scary."

The union representing air traffic controllers blames the mishaps on new flight patterns to ease congestion and inexperienced controllers.

"The trainees the FAA has been sending us … they don't send controllers. They send us trainees," Adams said.

[Pugilistic Animus]

Said one passenger: "That is very scary."

after having read that and watched the story --for once I gotta agree----the real cause--- Ol' RONALD!!!---he was very very good for aviation

[sevenstrokeroll]

The Three Federal Mistakes Bringing Airlines Down

1. Deregulating the airline industry druing the carter administration, circa 1977-78.

2. firing the air traffic controllers, circa '82...Ronald Regan.

3. doing away with landing slots at major airports and allowing a free for all...circa 2000.


The FAA can't get over the idea that people make the system work...they want to minimize people, maximize machines and never have to trust people again.

Deregulation, without expanding the infrastructure can't work.

[finfly1]

Aviation issues aside, the poor writing in that piece makes me despair. It frankly makes me embarassed as an American. The piece makes NO sense as written and quite obviously nobody proof reads the copy.

The irony of renaming it "Liberty" did not escape a German-Brazilian friend who, between Customs and TSA, spent close to an hour in transit through that particular airport.

[Del Prado]

The pilots are being told one thing 30 minutes before departure and then they get on the runway and we're required to tell them another thing.

sounds like Gatwick where a DVR SID is changed to a WIZAD.

[n5296s]

The pilots are being told one thing 30 minutes before departure and then they get on the runway and we're required to tell them another thing.

Funny, it happens all the time at Palo Alto(*). If low-time GA pilots can handle it I can't really understand why airline pilots would get their underwear in a twist. Must have been a quiet day at the paper, coupled with NATCA's perpetual agenda (justified imo, but still an agenda).

*: all IFR departures get the same clearance, which involves a right turn to a E or SE heading after departure. Departures for the north invariably get a last-minute change for a straight-out departure, immediately prior to take-off clearance. This involves a change of departure freq as well as the procedure itself. Not exactly a big deal, especially after the first time when you realise that this is going to be coming.

n5296s

[sevenstrokeroll]

so make all sids obsolete...all departures fly runway heading expect vectors to first enroute fix.

make your jepps alot lighter

;-)

[PaperTiger]

If low-time GA pilots can handle it I can't really understand why airline pilots would get their underwear in a twist.

I don't think the pilots are; it's the ATCO union up to their usual disinformation tricks again.